TOP TURKEY: Turkeys from Cooper Farms in Fort Recovery, Ohio prepare for a visit to the White House. The turkeys were hatched and raised at farms just across the Ohio state line in Mercer County. Cooper also has facilities in Paulding and Van Wert Counties. (Photos courtesy Cooper Farms)

WASHINGTON (WOWO): A pair of turkeys from a Fort Recovery, Ohio have been spared from the President's thanksgiving plate.

A decades-old tradition continues today in the national capital.

In a Rose Garden Ceremony this afternoon, President Obama will grant a pardon.

Gary Cooper is with Cooper Farms. Cooper Farms operates facilities in Paulding, Van Wert and Mercer Counties. He's the President of the National Turkey Federation, so he raises the turkey that's presented to the President. He says they started with about five dozen turkeys and then picked two birds based on their behavior.

Cooper says, its important not to make a turkey of the President Obama. They want a bird that's going to remain calm during the presentation. He says they've had trouble with other turkeys scrambling away from the President. “They had a heck of a time trying to catch it, I'm told.”

After meeting the president, the gobblers will now enjoy a life of ease at Morven Park in Leesburg, Virginia